The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan.

This book is: loosely William-and-Kate-inspired and exactly what I hoped it would be.Other elements: my own personal fantasies, the English Royal family, weddings, an American exchange student in England.Read them: if you like a good love story and especially if you find the idea of princes interesting.Overall rating: 8.5/10

I’ve reviewed a couple of Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan’s books for you before – both from their series set in LA, about privileged rich kids. Those books were fun and fluffy, and I enjoyed them. This book is like the grown-up older sister of those books: the characters are more complex, the plot is more complicated, the writing is tighter, and the force of the story is more driving.

As I mentioned, The Royal We is loosely inspired by the love story of Prince William and Kate Middleton. The heroine in The Royal We is, however, an American who is studying abroad in England. An American with the same name as me, which was like an extra little bonus for daydreaming purposes. And did I mentioned I studied abroad in England, too?

What impressed me was how completely this book – which was somewhat inspired by real life – managed to feel like a completely original series of events. Yes, the royal family in The Royal We sounds a little familiar, down to the charmingly rakish red-headed younger Prince, but the characters are all their own people and the background is different enough to keep the reader guessing. Bex’s engagement ring sounds like Kate’s, but it’s still thrilling to see her get it.

I don’t want you thinking this is a sugary fairy tale story: like any couple, Bex and her prince have their ups and downs, and when your wedding is so completely in the public eye your downs can be pretty dire.

The one downside of The Royal We for me was that I read it two weeks before my wedding, and the super intense pre-wedding prep that I watched Bex endure sent me into a bit of a panic attack about my own wedding. Because obviously, I should have been preparing as if I were marrying into a royal family. (I cried a little and then had some wine and calmed down.)

There’s one more thing you should know when you’re deciding if you want to read The Royal We and I can sum it up in one word: tiaras.